Royal commission into child sex abuse: mother Marion Smith’s anguish over new claims against Frank Valentine

Marion Smith's son Jeffrey killed himself before he was due to give evidence against an alleged abuser.Source: News Corp Australia

Frank Valentine / Picture: Geoff ChambersSource: News Corp Australia

FRANK Valentine, the man accused by a witness at the child abuse royal commission of sexually assaulting a girl at the Parramatta Girls School, was charged but never convicted over similar allegations at a boy’s home years later.

Mr Valentine was preparing to defend the charges at Newcastle in 1988 but the young man making the allegations, Jeffrey Dean Smith, killed himself two days before he was due to give evidence, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.

His mother, Marion Smith, has urged the royal commission to investigate the allegations and the circumstances under which Mr Valentine, now 73, continued working with children after he was transferred from Parramatta and was given “one more chance” by the Public Service Board.

Jeffrey Smith, 25, made the allegations in a statement to what was then Youth and Community Services in September 1987.

Jeffrey was in Yawarra Training School for Boys at Kurri Kurri in NSW for a number of months at the age of 14 in 1977 and 1978.

He claimed Mr Valentine, who was Yawarra’s assistant superintendent at the time, had sexually assaulted him on more than one occasion.

Mr Valentine vigorously denies all allegations of wrongdoing during his career as a youth worker.

His solicitor, Edward Schalit, last week said that Mr Valentine categorically denied the allegations made against him by Jeffrey Smith.

“Whilst he was charged with the offences, Mr Valentine pleaded not guilty to all of the allegations and was preparing his defence for the charges at the time of Jeffrey Dean Smith’s

Parramatta Girls School circa 1960.Source: News Corp Australia

death,” he said.

The royal commission has been told Mr Valentine had been moved from Parramatta in 1973 following allegations he had physically assaulted girls. No sexual assault claims were levelled against him at the time.

The Public Service Board had “serious doubts” over whether he should remain a senior person with the department and told him: “You have one more chance.”

He was moved to Daruk Boys’ Home at Windsor and then to Yawarra.

Mrs Smith said Jeffrey had never told his parents, his six brothers and sisters or the mother of his three children, such was his shame over the allegations.

Mrs Smith, 79, who learned of the allegations after Jeffrey’s suicide, said memories of the time came flooding back after The Daily Telegraph published a photo of Mr Valentine following the untested claims aired in the royal commission that he had raped a 13-year-old girl at Parramatta Girls School in 1972 or 1973.

“I thought, no, that would have to be him. Oh, I tell you what, I couldn’t stop crying,” Mrs Smith said yesterday.

Last week she asked the royal commission to investigate her son’s case.

Mr Valentine maintained his silence last week when contacted at his apartment complex at Redcliffe in Queensland for a comment.

Mrs Smith said that Jeffrey ended up at Yawarra because he didn’t like going to school. She said she did not know until after his death that he had battled depression and had been admitted to a hospital psychiatric unit nor that he had sought counselling before his death.

Two days before he was due to give evidence at Newcastle court against Mr Valentine, Jeffrey was with his family celebrating both Father’s Day and their father Colin’s birthday when a sister found him hanging from a tree in their garden.

A verdict of suicide was entered by the coroner but the family could not get an explanation for why his complaints to Yawarra staff were not followed up.

A spokesperson for the royal commission said they were constantly receiving information and, as a result, were investigating various institutions.

“It can only release details if it proceeds to a public hearing. the royal commission has not announced plans for a public hearing into Yawarra Boys Home,” the spokes-person said.

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